As shown schematically in FIG. 4, a known type of chip carrier socket connector, similar to that described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,055,972, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, comprises a one-piece housing 2 of insulating material and a series of strip-form contacts 4 anchored at a predetermined pitch on inner sides of a rectangular wall 3 of the housing 2 which wall extends between upper, mating and lower, board mounting faces.
The contacts 4 have contact portions 4a for resilient contact engagement with respective leads of an IC package mounted in the connector 1 and board connecting legs 4b, which are connected to the circuit pads of the circuit board by reflow soldering, extending from respective opposite ends from an anchoring portion. The legs 4b extend towards a lower edge of a central base-plate 5 of the housing 2 across an aperture 6 defined between the base-plate 5 and a lower portion of each of the four side walls which provide a surrounding rectangular frame-like structure.
In general, the contacts are anchored in the housing by forcible insertion, contact portions 4a leading, through the lower, board mounting face of the housing until received in straight grooves (not shown in FIG. 4) extending in the side wall 3 at the predetermined pitch between the bottom or board mounting face of the housing and the upper, mating face, anchoring tangs (not shown) being formed on opposite sides of the anchoring portions to ensure retention of the contacts in the respective grooves.
However, the assembly procedure does not always result in the board engaging legs being aligned in the same plane. In consequence, when the connector is mounted on the printed circuit board uneven contact pressure with respective solder pads of the board can cause poor and unreliable soldering.
In addition, as the ends of the board connecting legs are essentially free, there is also a risk of deformation of the legs both out of the common plane and within the plane in a direction longitudinally of the contact series with a consequent increase in the risk of unreliable soldering and the formation of undesirable solder bridges.